Asia is the central and eastern part of Eurasia, comprising approximately fifty countries.
Asia is joined to
Africa by the
Isthmus of Suez and to
Europe by a long border generally following the
Ural Mountains.
The
mean elevation of the continent is 950 m, the largest of any in the world. The plateau and mountainous areas broadly sweep SW-NW across Asia, climaxing in the high
Tibetan Plateau, rising to the highest peaks in the world in the
Himalaya. To the north west lie plains, while to the south lie the geologically distinct areas of the
Arabian peninsula, Indian subcontinent and Malay peninsula. Large numbers of islands lie south east of the continent.
